In The News

"Washburn School District’s Green and Healthy School Program has gained national attention for providing students with the tools necessary to live in harmony with the natural world and may even result in a visit from First Lady Michelle Obama.

"This year, the Washburn School District has gained national attention as a district that fosters academic excellence and environmentally focused programming at all levels for students.

"In September, Washburn High School was awarded the National Blue Ribbon Award for Academic Excellence. Then this spring, five Washburn Elementary students visited the White House — twice — to plant and harvest with First Lady Michelle Obama as part of her 'Let’s Move!' initiative supporting school gardens and healthy lifestyle choices as a way to combat child obesity.

"So what exactly does this recognition mean for the district, and what makes it such a unique place to learn?"

"Yesterday, First Lady Michelle Obama welcomed students from across the country to harvest the White House Kitchen Garden and prepare a fresh, healthy meal with ingredients straight from the garden. The First Lady invited back the students who participated in this year’s planting so they could see the fruits – and vegetables – of their labor.

"The students from Wisconsin, Colorado, Louisiana, and Washington, DC, whose schools have inspiring garden programs, couldn’t believe how much the garden had grown since they planted everything almost exactly two months ago."

"Five Washburn fourth and fifth graders will fly out to Washington D.C. Sunday to harvest food they planted in the White House Garden in April as part of First Lady Michelle Obama's "Let's Move!" initiative.

"Krause believes that the Green and Healthy initiative is "just as important as reading and math," and is the primary reason students from Washburn were selected for this opportunity.

"'The Green and Healthy initiatives and standards in every classroom mean that things like gardening are not just special, but instead are a core part of the education of every child in the district,' Krause explained."

"We can see in this space, there’s magic in this space, there’s a deep and sort of language-less understanding of what it means to grow something and what it means to be part of a system that is natural and what it means to eat from there. We have to reclaim the spirit of what we’re talking about. This is not just nutrition, it’s not just, you know, the sustenance of drinking clean water. It’s life in its most spiritual form. That’s powerful.

"It’s social justice, it’s spirit work. It’s fun, it’s food. I draw on many people’s wisdom, I consider myself a sort of conduit and less of a thinker myself. Vandana Shiva, who you know, she always said food is sacred but it’s as common as mud. We have to be in that space too. It’s not like food is so very special and we need to revere it and it’s sort of untouchable but it’s a real personal and daily relationship."

A new store has big plans to bring more food produced by American Indians to the Madison area.

“The endgame of what we are trying to do is to create a more resilient intertribal food distribution network that encourages more local production,” says Dan Cornelius, general manager of the Mobile Farmers Market, also a venture of the Intertribal Agriculture Council.

Producers from the Oneida Tribe of Wisconsin, the Bad River Tribe, the Red Cliff Band and the Fond du Lac Band are among those partnering with the Intertribal Agriculture Council.

“We don’t grow wild rice [in the Madison area] anymore because of pollution in the lakes and [man-made] changes to hydrology,” Cornelius explains. “We’ve all but forgotten the foods that 500 years ago used to be staples of the Wisconsin diet.”

"Well over a year ago, Sage Chavez and Charlene D'Cruz together founded Hearts to End Hunger, with the goal of facilitating a warm meal a day, every day of the year in the Ashland area while reducing food waste.

"Chavez and D'Cruz are making plenty of headway towards their goal as last week they kicked off week one of the second year of the 52 for 52 Soup Campaign and they have another free community meal all lined up for this Saturday from 12 to 2 p.m. at the Bretting Community Center."Chavez said the Hearts To End Hunger Free Community Taco Feed is for 'Everyone in the community.'

“'Just show up if you love hugs and tacos,' she said, adding that it’s a good time to get out of the house and enjoy some tacos and be a community. 'Plus this celebrates one year of the 52 to 52.'"

"'(It’s) trying to make students healthier and more active,” he said. “The fuel-up part is through the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board and that is encouraging students to eat healthier and have the nutrients and energy you need to play 60 minutes.'

"Goodness said they track the student’s progress on a bulletin board around a giant outline they traced of Lake Superior that has certain milestones marked on it. The students earn a healthy food reward when they reach those milestones."